Teter dominates Little 500 field to take second straight victory lap

For the second year in a row, Teter Cycling became champion of the women’s Little 500 race with an unofficial time of 1:10.43, with Pi Beta Phi and Delta Gamma rounding out the top three.

Teter’s Lauren Gowdy said winning the Little 500 is an unbelievable feeling.

“Every year, you want to do it, but it is surreal when you actually do it,” Gowdy said.

After the pre-race ceremony, the race got off to an action-packed start.

During lap 9, a crash in turn 3 wiped out a big portion of the pack of riders. The crash began as one of the riders lost her balance within the tight pack and tumbled to the ground, causing the rest of the pack to fall.

Gowdy said although rain preceded the race, track conditions were favorable but a bit windy.

“The wind was kind of picking up in turns three and four, but other than that, the track conditions great,” Gowdy said. “The rain packed the track down, and there were no sketchy turns.”

Pi Beta Phi’s Caroline Brown, whose shoe flew off in the early crash after colliding into the other riders, said her team was fortunate that the crash happened right in front of their pit.

“My bike was ruined,” Brown said. “Luckily, Elizabeth Mackey got on her bike and went as hard as she could to catch up.”

The quick thinking of Mackey pulled Pi Beta Phi out of an early hole and ultimately into the runner-up position.

“This is the proudest I’ve ever been after the Little 500,” Brown added.

While many teams had to play catch-up after the early crash, Teter’s safe riding allowed the team to avoid the crashes.

Lead by senior Caitlin Van Kooten, Teter stormed out to a substantial lead and eventually lapped the entire field before the half-way point of the 100 lap race. After lapping the field, Teter’s Emma Caughlin said the team’s goal was to keep themselves off of the track.

“Once we got a lap ahead of everyone, we just wanted to ride safe,” Caughlin said. “If you’re in a pack, anything could happen. People can break or speed up so you don’t really know.”

With the victory in the bag, Van Kooten finished the last couple laps with a smile on her face and crossed the finish lines both hands in the air. The victory capped an impressive career for Van Kooten. Earlier this spring, she defended her Individual Time Trials title and won her second consecutive Miss-N-Out.

After receiving the winner’s trophy on the stage set up in the infield of the track, the team of Gowdy, Van Kooten, Caughlin and Susan Laurie made their way around the track arm-in-arm one last time for their celebratory victory lap as Teter fans in attendance followed behind.

Gowdy said being able to share that victory lap with the fans was a great way to celebrate the victory.

“It was really nice having our fans out here to support us, and we couldn’t have done it without them,” she said.